Mirkwood Reflections

I saw this over at Shelley ’s, and thought it sounded like a great question for all of you: “This can be a quick one. Don’t take too long to think about it. Fifteen books you’ve read that will always stick with you. First fifteen you can recall in no more than 15 minutes.” 1. Midwives by Chris Bohjalian 2. Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien 3. How to Talk so Children will Listen and Listen so Children Will Talk by Faber and Mazlish 4. A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini 5. Blessed Child by Ted Dekker 6. Outlander by Diana Gabaldon 7. Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis 8. Gone-Away Lake by Elizabeth Enright 9. Joseph by Joyce Landorf 10. The Family Bed by Tine Thevenin 11. The Hurried Child by David Elkind 12. A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle 13. Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown 14. Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger 15. Can You Keep a Secret by Sophie Kinsella I never include The Bible on these sorts of lists, because I figure that's s...

Mariel suggested this week’s question Book Gluttony! Are your eyes bigger than your book belly? Do you have a habit of buying up books far quicker than you could possibly read them? Have you had to curb your book buying habits until you can catch up with yourself? Or are you a controlled buyer, only purchasing books when you have run out of things to read? Well, yes, I definitely buy more books than I can read. In the past, I have occasionally tried a moratorium on book-buying, but it doesn't work too well for me. Books are too tempting! I also buy books for my children - probably more than they can (or want to) read. Since I usually buy my books used, at least it isn't a terribly expensive habit.

Some people have a number of them on the go at any given time, perhaps a reading in bed book, a breakfast table book, a bathroom book, and so on, which leads me to… Are you currently reading more than one book? Right you are! If so, how many books are you currently reading? Oh, wow. Um. Six, I guess. Seven if you count what I'm reading to the kids. Some of them more actively than others. Is this normal for you? Definitely. I usually have at least one fiction and one non-fiction read going. Where do you keep your current reads? All over the place? One on the end table, one in the bathroom, the rest stacked either in the library basket or here and there around. What about you? I'd love to hear your answers - blog them, facebook them, or just leave them in the comments!

It’s a week or two later than you’d expect, and it may be almost a trite question, but … what were your favorite books from 2008? (It’s an oldie but a goodie question for a reason, after all … because, who can’t use good book suggestions from time to time?) ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Well, I'll do almost anything to procrastinate writing this week apparently. My plot has diverged and I need to choose which way to go. And I CAN'T decide! LOL So, here you get my list of the books I rated EXCELLENT in 2008. If I get to the end of a year and I can't remember what a book is about, it really can't be all that excellent, can it? So, I'll write for you a short snippet of why I think the book is worthwhile. MY FICTION PICKS 13 Little Blue Envelopes by Maureen Johnson (Young Adult) Ginny's eccentric aunt leaves her 13 blue envelopes with instructions to travel to England and further. Ginny is an interesting character and so are the many people she meets on her travels. The pre...

No, no … this isn’t the question you’re probably expecting, that asks about your winter reading habits. What I want to know today is … what are the most “wintery” books you can think of? The ones that almost embody Winter? Well, my mind first goes to children's books. The Big Snow by Berta Hader Katy and the Big Snow by Virginia Lee Burton The Long Winter by Laura Ingalls Wilder Snow Treasure by Marie McSwigan Grown up books that speak "Winter" to me? Hmmm.... I'll have to give that some thought!

Do you give books as gifts? Yes. To everyone? Or only to select people? Always to my children, sometimes to other people too. Even my husband, who isn't a "reader" by any stretch of the imagination. How do you feel about receiving books as gifts? In theory, I think it's great! In practice, I've often recieved books I have no interest in reading or have already read. I haven't made a practice of returning books, so they sit on the shelf or eventually get resold.

What is the best book you ever bought for yourself ? I bought The Fiery Cross by Diana Gabaldon for myself - brand new in hardcover. And, why? What made it the best? What made it so special? I don't often buy brand new (prefer used) and almost never hardcover fiction. I had read the first four books in the series and had to run out and buy the new one as soon as it came out. Made a special trip, paid full price. Enjoyed the book immensely!

1. Do you get to read as much as you WANT to read? (I’m guessing #1 is an easy question for everyone?) No, I do not. However, I make time for reading anyway. I almost always read while I eat. (I can hear the gasps of horror now!) And sometimes I read far into the night. 2. If you had (magically) more time to read–what would you read? Something educational? Classic? Comfort Reading? Escapism? Magazines? If I had more time to read, I'd read everything and anything. Staring at my bedroom bookshelf, I said to my husband the other night, "I don't ever think I'll get to read all those books!" I do make time for reading 60-100 books a year, plus magazines, but I could easily read twice that many and still never read everything I'd like to read. I'm getting more selective, now that I realize my time for reading is inevitably limited.

1. Do you have a favorite author? I have several! Janet Evanovich, Ted Dekker, J.R.R. Tolkien, Jeffery Deaver, to name just a few. But for this meme, I'll choose Diana Gabaldon. 2. Have you read everything he or she has written? No. After reading the first book in the Lord John series, I chose not to read the rest because I am not comfortable with that character's lifestyle choices. He is a character in the Outlander series and his character plays a major role, but was important to the plot. I didn't like him enough to read a spinoff series based on him. 3. Did you LIKE everything? Everything that I read I liked except as detailed above. I love Outlander best, though. But all of the books in the Outlander series are compelling and absorbing. There are six now and she is writing the seventh. 4. How about a least favorite author? Wow, that's hard. I don't tend to read books I don't enjoy. I hesitate to name names. I have avoided reading Harry Potter . How...